Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 52

Devanagari script

अनपत्या न तद्राष्ट्रे धनहीनोपि कोपि न । अवृद्धसेवी नो कश्चिदकांडमृतिभाक्च न

Transliteration

anapatyā na tadrāṣṭre dhanahīnopi kopi na | avṛddhasevī no kaścidakāṃḍamṛtibhākca na

Translation

ആ രാജ്യത്തിൽ ആരും സന്താനഹീനരായിരുന്നില്ല; ആരും—ധനഹീനരായാലും—ജീവനോപാധിയില്ലാതെ ആയിരുന്നില്ല; അയോഗ്യരെ സേവിക്കുന്നവരില്ല, ആരും അകാലമൃത്യുവിന് ഇരയായില്ല.

Word by Word

• anapatyāḥ: childless (persons)
• anapatyāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: an- (नञ्) + apatya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; नञ्-तत्पुरुषः—‘अपत्यं न अस्ति’

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध-निपात

• tat-rāṣṭre: in that kingdom
• tat-rāṣṭre: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + rāṣṭra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः—‘तस्य राष्ट्रे’

• dhana-hīnaḥ: poor; lacking wealth
• dhana-hīnaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dhana (प्रातिपदिक) + hīna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः—‘धनेन हीनः’

• api: even
• api: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अपि-कार (even/also)

• kaḥ-api: anyone
• kaḥ-api: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ka (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + api (अव्यय)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; अनिश्चितार्थक-सर्वनाम (someone)

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध-निपात

• a-vṛddha-sevī: one who does not serve elders
• a-vṛddha-sevī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: a- (नञ्) + vṛddha (प्रातिपदिक) + sevī (कृदन्त; सेव् धातु, णिनि/इन् प्रत्यय)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; नञ्-तत्पुरुषः—‘वृद्धं न सेवते’ (one who does not serve elders)

• no: nor
• no: Pratiṣedha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na u (अव्यय; न + उ/ओ)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेधार्थक-निपात (emphatic ‘nor’)

• kaścit: anyone
• kaścit: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kaścit (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; अनिश्चितार्थक-सर्वनाम (someone/anyone)

• a-kāṇḍa-mṛti-bhāk: one who meets untimely death
• a-kāṇḍa-mṛti-bhāk: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: a- (नञ्) + kāṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक) + mṛti (प्रातिपदिक) + bhāk (कृदन्त; भज् धातु, क्विप्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; नञ्-तत्पुरुषः—‘अकाण्डा मृति: यस्य भागः’ = one who meets untimely death (negated in verse)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक (and)

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध-निपात

Speaker

Skanda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: pilgrimage-inquirer within the Purāṇic frame

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A flourishing Kāśī: families with children, alms and food shared, elders honored, physicians and teachers respected; a calm civic order with temples in the background.

Characters & Entities

• Divodāsa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

When dharma is upheld through righteous governance and conduct, society gains stability, longevity, and well-being.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī’s sacred influence is suggested through the extraordinary auspiciousness and protection present in its associated realm.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual; the verse describes outcomes of dharmic life—prosperity and freedom from untimely death.